AMONG WILD SHEEP.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 20058, 22 September 1928, Page 15

AMONG WILD SHEEP.

OUTLAWS OF THE HILLS. A SOUTH ISLAND JAUNT. YOUNG MEN'S EXPERIENCES* Outlaws of the mountains and the bush, wild sheep aro a menace in many parts of the South Island. Wary as tho cautious deer, they roam over the mountain heights far above tho well-bred flocks from which they have broken generations ago. In four or five generations these sheep degenerate into small, hairy animals with sharp three-cornered heads, much akin to those far-away ancestors which man, by years of intensive selective breeding, lias developed into the present lino typo of back-country sheep. They have years of wool 011 them, and also a distinctive odour. Their menace lies not in their odour, but in their enticing moro lawabiding sheep to follow them to the bush and the mountain heights, to tlio camps of the outlaws. Some of these species were seen, and two of them were shot, in tho Murchison district u week or two ago by two men, one of whom is a student at Canterbury College. Tho party, which spent nine days in the mountains, and nine nights iu sleeping bags, says tho Lyttelton Times, comprised Mr. J. A. Curtis, a Canterbury Collego student, whose homo is in Westport, and Mr. Gordon Atkinson, son of tlio late Mr. S. J. Atkinson, a well-known bridge contractor, of Westport, whose accidental death by drowning was recorded a few days ago. Through the Buller Gorge. Mr. Curtis stated that ho and Mr. Atkinson left the latter's homo at Orawaiti, a few miles out of Westport, at 5.30 a.m. On their motor-cycle and side-chair they had a companion in "Tip," a black and tan sheep dog. Each man had two rifles —a .303 and a .22—and a camera and enough food to last for about a week. The wind blowing through the entrance to the Gorge was like a blast coming out of a funnel, and it cut through them like a knife. Mist which invariably lay in the Gorge 011 fine mornings prevented them from getting any sunshine until about 10 a.m., and both they and "Tip" were glad to get out for an occasional run. Leaving tho Buller Road they turned up tho ManglCs River Valley, next to the Maitakitaki Valley, along which lived the descendants of tho legendary "lost tribe." At Tutaki the Mangles_ Valley broadened out into a fairly extensive flat, at the top of which the party obtained a magnificent view of the snow-clad mountains at the head of the valley. Nearer at hand and on all sides were mountains, the lower slopes of which had been cleared and burned for sheep grazing. A rather precarious and amateurish swing bridge over the Teramea River, the snow-fed waters of which made tho travellers' shinboncs ache when they paddled in to test the depth, exceeded their expectations by safely carrying the weight of the motor-cycle. Leaving the car the two -young men commenced tho climb to the ridge, and on tho way saw three does. Three and a-half hours' climbing brought them to the hut at 6 p.m. On the last mile or two of the track they bad snow all the way, with about 2ft. at the hut, and also in tho fireplace. Two .Wild Rams Secured. The heights of Mount Ilutton was the objective the next morning. On the stiff climb toward *it the men sank sometimes to their waists in snow. Occasionally 011 a shady faco they would strike a frozen surface, and there tho going was easier. It was fateful for two wild rams that they were seen by the men on the way up. A bullet each, and they rolled down a steep snow-covered face to the bottom of the gully,' where the sportsmen left them for tho time being. A magnificent sight met the trarnpers' eyes when they reached tho top of the ridge. Immediately below was a basin about a mile across, with deep snow smoothing out all the irregularities. To the west stood out on a ridge three high peaks—Mounts Hope, Owen and Murchison, all of six or seven thousand feet in height. Golden Bay could be seen over tho ridges to the north. Floundering downward through powdery snow, tlio men reached the two wild rams they h;|l shot. Both had a beautiful set of horns with a doublo twist. These wero cut off for souvenirs, and somo chops wero likewise cut for the hungry "Tip." So-called Cure for Frostbite. The efficacy of a so-called cure for frostbite was tried at the hut. Mr. Atkinson, ever optimistic, rubbed his cold feet with snow, but very soon danced back into the hut with a wry face and much colder feet. After both trying the snow treatment they placed their fast-waning faith in massaging. During this process "Tip" stored up trouble for himself by chewing tho tip of one of tho ram's horns. He happened to be noticed in the act. " The sleep in the hay was a dastardly failure," said Mr. Curtis. "The temperature was about SOdeg. below, and so were we. Wo crawled out of our sleeping bags at 3 a.m., lit a firo under a tree, and waited for daylight. It seemed a I®"S wait. After breakfast wo went along the plain for a shot, but saw nothing bigger than a hare. It was not until live days later, after a heavy fall of snow, that we sighted deer in any numbers."